Jeremy Tuber

Dentists, why a promotional dental video gets you better patients than direct mail

Dentists looking to market your practice, forget Groupon. Online video brings in the patients you want

Quick, what type of patients do you wish your practice had less of?

Excluding the more “colorful or unusual” answers some of you came up with, most dentists would want to exclude price-shoppers: disloyal, price-focused, cheapskates who will hop from office to office to save a buck.

To be fair, we’ve all been in these “frugal” shoes before. Sometimes focusing on the best price is a good idea. For dentistry, I’d argue this is an unwise decision driver. With a handpiece going a few hundred thousand RPMs in someone’s mouth is not a time to look for the cheapest provider. Unfortunately, people do foolish things, so there will always be bottom feeders who are looking for the cheapest option. The question is, “If you’re looking to market your dental practice, how do you bring in the loyal patients and avoid the price shoppers?”

First, avoid offering deals and incentives via direct mail, digital coupons, Groupon, or anything like that. If you’ve tried these, you’ve already experienced that it may bring in a few good patients—most are disloyal deal hunters who have already moved on. Remember, these patients acted on a deal/discount, so their behavior already price is a major factor in their choosing a dentist.

Second, I’d advocate having a promotional video filmed for your practice. Disclosure: I film dental promotional videos, so it’s in my best interest to promote this type marketing initiative. However, I am also an experienced marketer (20+ years), so let me share with you why video will bring in the good and leave out the bad—when it comes to new patients.

Why marketing videos bring in the “good” dental patients you want

Price shoppers visiting your dental practice website aren’t interested in, and have no time for, your video. They want hard numbers, data, and a quick price check. They’re going to look on your website for prices—not having any luck, they’ll call your front office and ask how much a crown is. From having worked with dental practices since 2010 and being married to a front office professional, I know. Price shoppers don’t watch videos, which makes video an ideal promotional tool if you want to avoid these types of patients.

What type of website visitor would watch your dental marketing video?

Visitors who are willing to invest time in learning about you, your team, and your office. They’ll invest 2-3 minutes to get a feel for what you have to offer. These patients want to learn about you, and they’re curious about what it’s like to be treated at your office. They want to see if you’re going to be a good long-term fit for them and their family. Ultimately, they are going to choose to schedule an appointment at your office because your video made them feel good about you, and that’s exactly what effective videos do: they focus on establishing a personal connection with viewers—not on price comparisons.  

Adept videographers will center your video on sharing/capturing the warm vibe of the office, your friendly dental team, and the gentle, caring, and honest way you interact with your patients. These are the precisely intangible benefits that will bring the right patients in—the ones who will be loyal patients for years.

More important, when you choose the right videographer, she/he is going to painstakingly make certain that everything (I mean everything) in your video is focused on making you look, feel, and sound like a trusted, caring clinician. They’ll make sure your first impression is impeccable (no matter how uneasy you feel about being in front of a camera). Isn’t that the type of message and first impression you want potential patients to receive?

So what’s the bottom line? Direct mail, Groupon, and marketing videos on your website, they’ll all drive in new patients (some more than others). The real question is, what is the quality and lifetime value of those patients? You can either start your relationship with a patient by offering them a discount or by personally sharing with them why you love being a dentist and how you’re going to take care of them when they schedule an appointment—which do you think will bring in the patients you really want?

Have questions or comments, Dentists? Even if you’re not practicing in Arizona, even if you have another video production company working on your video, feel free to drop me a line. Click the following link to reach out to me, and I’ll be happy to offer some quick, honest insights about your dental marketing video.

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